The LEE Initiative was founded in 2018 by Chef Edward Lee and Lindsey Ofcacek with a straightforward but urgent idea: the food and hospitality community needed stronger systems of care. Originally focused on expanding training and access for future chefs, particularly women, the organization launched the Women Culinary and Spirits Program, which supported early-career women chefs through skill-building, mentorship, and networking. This early emphasis later informed the creation of SHIA, a nonprofit research restaurant launched in Washington, D.C. in late 2024, which now operates as an independent supporting organization aligned with but separate from The LEE Initiative’s direct programming.

The COVID-19 pandemic marked a turning point for The LEE Initiative. As restaurants closed and workers lost income overnight, The LEE Initiative rapidly expanded its scope, becoming one of the country’s largest emergency food relief operations for restaurant workers and independent operators. This work required speed, flexibility, and deep collaboration across the food and hospitality community. It also revealed how fragile existing systems were and how critical coordinated care could be in moments of crisis.

That experience reshaped our long-term approach and clarified our mission to strengthen regional food resiliency through education, collaboration, and sustained support. During this period, the organization developed grantmaking and relief efforts such as the Restaurant Reboot Relief Program, the Black Kitchen Initiative and, later the Bluegrass Bartenders Fund, providing direct assistance to farmers, hospitality workers and food entrepreneurs while addressing long-standing inequities within the industry. At the same time, The LEE Initiative began exploring community based culinary education through the McAtee Community Training Kitchen, which provided hot meals to West Louisville residents while serving as a training space for high school students. 

As the food system continued to shift, The LEE Initiative further refined its focus toward long-term, community-based impact. While sustaining national and local workforce initiatives, youth education again emerged as a critical leverage point for resilience. In August 2025, Skill Kitchen launched in Louisville, offering hands-on cooking, nutrition education, and food systems learning that build essential life skills, confidence, and lasting connections to food and community.

Today, The LEE Initiative centers its work in Louisville while continuing to steward national initiatives such as the Black Kitchen Initiative. Across all programs, we invest in people at every stage of the food system, prioritizing accessibility, collaboration, and long-term community impact.